same old national

Jobs(.govt.nz) to Australia

Written By: Bunji - Date published: 10:52 am, January 23rd, 2013 - 27 comments

Danyl at Dimpost has discovered that National is so serious about (enhancing) the drain of jobs and Kiwis to Australia that they’ve actually outsourced the Government Jobs website (http://jobs.govt.nz/) to… Australia. While I love irony, surely this says everything about National’s actually commitment to the people of our country.

The spinmeister of Planet Key: Retrospective

Written By: karol - Date published: 10:07 am, December 18th, 2012 - 37 comments

On TV3 this morning, John Key was soothing and slick.  All is well on Planet Key, and critics are delusional.  He reeled of numbers and facts, but material realities of daily lives, and the suffering of people on low incomes aren’t mentioned. And asset sales?

Spreading privilege

Written By: Mike Smith - Date published: 8:27 am, October 12th, 2012 - 10 comments

This week I’ve been to see the surrealists at the Tate Modern in London, and read about the surrealists at the Conservative party conference in Birmingham. God knows what Cameron was talking about, with his  line about spreading privilege – Knighthoods for all? Everybody off to Eton and Oxbridge?

The losses keep coming

Written By: Bunji - Date published: 12:08 pm, September 24th, 2012 - 54 comments

Welcome to National’s economy: Kiwirail has just announced 158 infrastructure and engineering job losses, and this afternoon Solid Energy will probably announce the loss of 300 jobs at Spring Creek, and 200-250 elsewhere.  This on top of the swathe of job losses in Huntly and Christchurch Solid Energy announced a month ago.

Bye bye workers’ rights

Written By: Bunji - Date published: 4:55 pm, September 3rd, 2012 - 12 comments

The government is pushing on with their Environmental Relations Act Amendment Bill, reducing workers’ rights to rest breaks.

Why asset sales – it’s politics

Written By: Mike Smith - Date published: 5:06 pm, July 30th, 2012 - 20 comments

Finally the truth is out. Gaynor and Armstrong agree – National Party politics are the real reason for asset sales.  They make no sense economically. They are not about debt reduction. Key’s asset sales are a political bribe – nothing more and nothing less.

Doubts over Cameron’s welfare blitz

Written By: Mike Smith - Date published: 12:57 pm, June 26th, 2012 - 2 comments

That’s the Guardian headline. Supposedly designed to give the Tories “political momentum”, it is late and over budget.  The Treasury is resigned to the programme costing money rather than providing savings. The LibDems won’t have a bar of it. Critics describe it as “pitch-rolling”, preparing the ground for further “reforms”.  More like spin-bowling here.

Pike Road?

Written By: Mike Smith - Date published: 10:27 pm, June 21st, 2012 - 10 comments

A strong safety warning today about sheeptruck disaster met Ministerial indifference from Associate Transport Minister Simon Bridges. He said Australian legislation to promote safety and fairness in the road transport industry was not needed here because “New Zealand already has a system of work time requirements to help manage the risk of fatigue”. More infamous last words from a National politician – but the police are really worried.

One law for some

Written By: Mike Smith - Date published: 7:48 pm, June 4th, 2012 - 18 comments

Financially troubled private school Wanganui Collegiate received a $3million grant in Budget 2012, 3 times the annual operating grant of the larger Wanganui City College. Since then it has been advertising its low class sizes and ability to  reduce fees significantly. Private schools will no doubt be using the current outrage over increased class sizes for recruiting purposes, but they should not be doing it with taxpayers’ money.

Another MMP rort?

Written By: Mike Smith - Date published: 11:50 am, May 4th, 2012 - 44 comments

The media are doing a good job investigating John Banks’ donation history.  The Police are presumably also doing theirs, and it seems clear that the matter must end up in Court and the issue of who is telling the truth will be decided by a judge. Some in the media have dismissed the question of any threat to National’s majority. Short-term maybe, long-term I’m not so sure.

Classy

Written By: James Henderson - Date published: 10:49 am, April 30th, 2012 - 37 comments

What your ruling party got up to at its South Island Regional Conference. Michael Woddhouse, list MP and failed candidate for Dunedin South, speaking at a podium behind a toilet seat with Dunedin South MP Clare Curran’s face attached. It’s witty, too. That’s what I like about it.

Choices, choices: Farrar seeks parental leave funding

Written By: Zetetic - Date published: 7:27 am, April 13th, 2012 - 42 comments

Last week, David Farrar demanded to know where the government is getting $62m for youth mental health services… Actually he didn’t (they’re stealing it from other health funding) but he is demanding Labour explains where it would get $125m a year for extending paid parental leave. I guess he just really wants to make sure it’s feasible. Lets help him out with some options

Choices, choices: parental leave too expensive?

Written By: Zetetic - Date published: 6:40 am, April 11th, 2012 - 190 comments

The Rightwhingers are saying extending parental leave is too expensive. We’re talking about a tiny sliver of government spending – 0.2% to be precise. And a tiny fraction of what the government is borrowing. If money is really so tight, there’s plenty of poor quality decisions that National could reverse first.

Collins’ last stand

Written By: IrishBill - Date published: 6:55 pm, April 2nd, 2012 - 46 comments

It looks like Collin’s has got herself into a bind with her defamation case and Key’s not gonna get her out.

And why would he? Her flailing offers an excellent distraction from the real PR damage of this dispute – the fact his government is only interested in looking after its mates.